One wire dispensing and shipping package of this general type which is commonly employed in the magnet wire industry consists of a wire-carrying spool disposed vertically in a cylindrical container from the open top of which the wire may be withdrawn for the manufacture of coils or the like. Packages of this type are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,000,493, 3,001,642, 3,096,951, 3,811,639, 4,161,248 and 4,451,014. As shown by U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,491,876 and 3,823,894, a similar type of wire package utilizes a generally rectangular carton with top flaps which are opened to a vertical position during withdrawal of wire from the package. When shipping wire packages of the latter type, it is desirable to arrange the cartons in multiple stacks on a pallet. Since each package may weigh about 35 kilograms, the stacks may exhibit instability due to shifting of individual packages during normal shipping and handling. It would be desirable, therefore, if some means were provided in packages of this type to permit the cartons thereof to be stacked in a stable nested relationship.
Larger wire packages of the carton type which may weigh about 35 kilograms each are difficult and cumbersome to manually lift and carry to a location of use. One attempt to solve this problem has employed cutouts in the carton walls for handholds. Being of cardboard construction, the carton walls are susceptible to tearing at the cutouts when the carton is handled roughly or carelessly. In a previous patent applicaton, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,493,462 issued Jan. 15, 1985, I disclosed a molded plastic spool provided with integral handles which facilitate two-handed manual lifting of the spool. Use of such a spool in a wire package of the carton type would be advantageous if some means were provided to permit manual lifting and transport of the wire package by the spool handles while the spool remains disposed in the wire package.